Presently there are a number of approaches in use to treat complex fractures of the hand or foot. One common approach is the use of plating to provide the necessary internal fixation. One significant drawback to plating is the necessity to form a large incision in the vicinity of the fracture. In addition, the muscle, ligament and other sensitive tissue is often moved so as to provide access to the surface of the bone. The disturbance of these tissues can extend the time required for recuperation and rehabilitation. The plate is attached to one or more fragments in such as way so as to position the fracture in a proper alignment for healing. Due to the aforementioned drawbacks, plating is used primarily for those case where there is a need to stabilize complex fractures.
Where the bone fractures are less complex it is possible to treat the fracture with a cast. While casting is a more conservative approach this fixation technique may not produce sufficient immobilization of the fragments so as to result in a favorable outcome. Casting is generally not as effective when the fracture is oblique rather than transverse as the bone segments can move relative to one another resulting in a less than desirable outcome.
Other forms of bone fixation approaches include wiring the bone fragments together, pinning the bone fragments to a rigid metal frame positioned outside of the patient's body, and use of percutaneous pins that are inserted introfocally and subsequently connected to a rigid metal frame external to the body. These approaches tend to cause irritation of sensitive tissues, such as tendons, ligaments, muscle, and nerves and can results in irritation, pain, as well as infection due to incisions and open wounds adjacent the pins.
Although a large number of approaches are available to treat fractures, none to date provide a percutaneous intrafocal plate that is simple and safe to use and is an effective bone fixation device. Many fixation devices for use in stabilizing bone fractures lack the ability to easily, efficiently and safely and require an invasive approach which can result in increased pain, and infection for the patient and extended recuperation and rehabilitation time frames.